AMD roadmap suggests Kaveri APUs will use new FM2+ socket

An updated AMD roadmap spotted by ComputerBase suggests that next-gen Kaveri APUs will use a new socket. One of the slides (PDF) indicates that Kaveri processors will employ an FM2+ socket instead of the FM2 design used by Trinity and Richland APUs. There are no details on how FM2+ differs from its predecessor, though. Depending on what's changed, firmware updates may be able to bring Kaveri compatibility to existing FM2 motherboards.

FM2+ will be the third socket for AMD's desktop APUs. FM1 was introduced for Llano, and it lasted only a year before being replaced by the FM2 socket used by Trinity and its forthcoming Richland successor. Kaveri-derived APUs are scheduled to arrive before the end of the year. If they're not backward compatible with current FM2 motherboards, that socket could also have a limited lifespan.

Intel has changed sockets and required new motherboards for each of its last several desktop CPU platforms, so AMD isn't alone in this practice. In fact, AMD tends to squeeze more mileage out of each socket than its chief rival.

Potentially more important than Kaveri's socket is whether the chip will rely on AMD's current chipset platform. AMD hasn't released a truly new platform hub in a while, and Intel continues to improve its offerings on that front. While current AMD platforms offers plenty of USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gbps connectivity, we've found their I/O performance to be inferior to that of comparable Intel platforms.